


The Hero's Funeral

by Morgyn Leri (morgynleri)



Series: Fireside Tales [153]
Category: Greek and Roman Mythology
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, GFY
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-21
Updated: 2014-06-21
Packaged: 2018-02-05 13:15:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1819795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/morgynleri/pseuds/Morgyn%20Leri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>This they tell, that Medusa was made a monster for the anger of an offended Athena, whose temple she desecrated with her lover.</i>
</p><p> <i>This they tell, that Perseus, with borrowed sandals and helm, and a shined shield defeated the snake-haired Gorgon who turned all who came to her to stone.</i></p><p>
  <i>This they tell, that Perseus came with the head of Medusa to rescue Andromeda and turn the monster to stone.</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Hero's Funeral

**Author's Note:**

> Medusa, Persephone, Andromeda  
> Prompt: Water  
> Alternate Universe: Winter, Knowledge, and Power

_This they tell, that Medusa was made a monster for the anger of an offended Athena, whose temple she desecrated with her lover._

She cannot see for the tears in her eyes, her feet finding the path without needing any guidance from her senses, taking her up the hill to the great temple of her beloved goddess. Up marble stairs, from bright sun to the cool shade of the interior, and letting her collapse before the altar to Athena.

Blood smears her thighs, and her robes are torn, and she can barely choke out a plea to Athena to hear her, to answer her, to please aid her. To grant her peace from the attentions of those she has ever turned away in favor of her devotions to the goddess. To wisdom and to war, though her skill and knowledge had not been enough to protect her from the depredations of one who had desecrated her body.

Gentle hands stroke her hair, and a quiet voice murmurs, making promises that no more will a man try to claim her for his own, no matter that man be mortal or god. Strength flows through her veins, and a hissing fills her soul with peace, and she rises when commanded, standing proud before the bright-helmed goddess who has ever been given her devotion.

She can no longer live at this temple, where mortals may come to worship, but there are other places to be, where she can devote her life to her goddess.

_This they tell, that Perseus, with borrowed sandals and helm, and a shined shield defeated the snake-haired Gorgon who turned all who came to her to stone._

"Why should I turn over the greatest of my uncle's tools to you?" Persephone watches the mortal man who stands on the far side of the Styx with a faint smile on her face. He is a curious one, this Perseus, but she has already heard of the task with which the boy has been charged, and she is of like mind to her cousin-sister, that she will not aid in the death of a woman who is called monster for being strong where men would have her weak.

"I am charged to kill the monster Medusa, so she will turn no other man to stone." Perseus seems to think she will find his quest worthy, and Persephone barely refrains from laughing in his face.

"Tell the pitiful mortal who sent you if he wishes to have such a prize, he may seek it for himself. You shall find no help in that quest here, child of my father." Persephone smiles now, cold and sharp as a winter wind. "I am mistress here, and I will not aid you in killing a woman."

_This they tell, that Perseus came with the head of Medusa to rescue Andromeda and turn the monster to stone._

She is coiled against her husband when she sees the strange thing flying too close over the waves, and shifts, watching it for long minutes before it resolves into a man, flying on winged sandles, and looking disgruntled. As if he has been denied the prize he sought, and now, he comes close to her. Foolish man.

Lunging with all the speed and power she has learned to harness, she snaps him from the air, relishing the taste of blood and the crunch of bone. A would-be hero, perhaps, but now just a meal to share with her beloved. Andromeda laughs, the sea around her foaming with her mirth and with the blood of the strange man.

_This, they do not tell. That Poseidon raped a priestess of Athena, and she was given the ability to turn men to stone for her pain. That Persephone kept the helm of Hades where it was of use to her husband-uncle, for she would not have him stray far from her side. That Andromeda needed no rescue from the serpent who freed her from the woman who was made to be her parents' sacrifice._

_This, they do not tell, that Perseus was lost in his quest, and his mother needed no one's help to destroy her would-be suitor when she had her own weapons. She mourned for her son, and returned to her father alone, refusing any other suitor who would come near her._

_This, they do not tell, for who would hear of women whose power does not rest in men?_

**Author's Note:**

> Another the monster isn't a monster story, and while Medusa does not save herself, she need not seek the aid of a man. Perseus must seek the aid of a woman, a queen, and fails to achieve his quest, when he thinks he should be given all he asks. And in the end, it is the hero who falls, and those he rescues - well, one needs no rescue, and another is capable of protecting herself.


End file.
